Page 38 - Past Chair Book-Pre 2020

42 The National Supply and Machinery D ealers’ Association

They were influenced by these two men, and if it had not
been for our friends who were in Cincinnati at that meeting, that
measure today would have been shut down entirely instead of
being put on the table to come up at another time.
I say that will go on forever unless we can get them to come
to some other conclusion. Let us tell them so; let us explain
this one way or the other. They are influenced by the small end
of their association. They are making too much money to pay
any attention to us, and I think we have a right to know what
they are going to do. They invited the discussion— we did not
invite it.
I wrote that letter when that contract came up in this way,
and I said “Gentlemen, we have been working for ten years in
a satisfactory way without a contract,” and the}’ came back on
three different occasions and asked us to sign it so that they could
get it up.
I think our Association would lack dignity if it did rot get
after them and bring it to a conclusion.
M r. B rown : I think the manufacturer is always ready and
willing to advance his prices. If the price of cast iron or bronze
goes up, Mr. Manufacturer turns around to the dealer and raises
his price. He says “You are getting more monev; if we put up
our price ten per cent, you get one per cent.” So we do, but our
costs are going up. Our rent and insurance are going up all the
time, and I do not think there is any man in the machinery busi­
ness who does not find his expenses increasing. The item of rent
alone will eat up the one per cent which the manufacturer gives
by advancing ten per cent.
I think there should be a resolution signifying to the manu­
facturers that we are in accord, as an association, on a price of
fifteen per cent, I think if we do that it will demonstrate to them
that we are putting ourselves shoulder to shoulder, and that we
propose to maintain it. (Applause).

M r, P a tterso n : In listening to the argument an idea has
occurred to me which I have not heard. I know it is our policy,
and the policy of most machinery dealers to deal in second hand
tools; and we all know that the cream of the business is in the